mollyp0pslibrary's review against another edition
4.0
A really interesting take on the queen of hearts! I am excited to read the next two in the series!
sarahjunebooks's review against another edition
2.0
The cover of this book and the hook is a lot more intriguing than the actual book. The writing isn't necessarily bad, but there were several things that made me not enjoy this book as much as I could've.
There were a lot of loose endings. Characters were introduced who had absolutely no point in being in the story. There was no resolution to a lot of events that took place. All in all it was rather anti-climatic. I know that there are 3 books in this series, but the entirety of book one sort of just seemed empty.
The characters are for the most part lacking. There was a weird relationship between Dinah (the Princess) and Wardley, and I wasn't sure how I felt about it, just that it was giving me weird vibes.
One aspect that I did really enjoy was the world of Wonderland and the use of characters. Charles (the young prince) is likened to the Mad Hatter and I thought it worked really well.
The book as a whole is surprisingly dark and twisted, which is very true to the nature of wonderland.
One of the biggest problems (which seems to be a common compaint with this book) is that the setting is amazing, but there is not much of a plot line.
I'm not sure if I will continue this series yet or not because from other ratings on Goodreads, the series does get better as it goes. But if the second book is anything like the first, I do not forsee myself getting very far.
If you enjoy retellings or Wonderland, then you might consider reading this book, but all in all, it's not something that I would readily reccomend.
Thanks for stopping by and reading this book review!
If you would like to read more book reviews, check out my blog at www.sarahjuneblog.com!
Happy reading!
There were a lot of loose endings. Characters were introduced who had absolutely no point in being in the story. There was no resolution to a lot of events that took place. All in all it was rather anti-climatic. I know that there are 3 books in this series, but the entirety of book one sort of just seemed empty.
The characters are for the most part lacking. There was a weird relationship between Dinah (the Princess) and Wardley, and I wasn't sure how I felt about it, just that it was giving me weird vibes.
One aspect that I did really enjoy was the world of Wonderland and the use of characters. Charles (the young prince) is likened to the Mad Hatter and I thought it worked really well.
The book as a whole is surprisingly dark and twisted, which is very true to the nature of wonderland.
One of the biggest problems (which seems to be a common compaint with this book) is that the setting is amazing, but there is not much of a plot line.
I'm not sure if I will continue this series yet or not because from other ratings on Goodreads, the series does get better as it goes. But if the second book is anything like the first, I do not forsee myself getting very far.
If you enjoy retellings or Wonderland, then you might consider reading this book, but all in all, it's not something that I would readily reccomend.
Thanks for stopping by and reading this book review!
If you would like to read more book reviews, check out my blog at www.sarahjuneblog.com!
Happy reading!
jenn_darling's review against another edition
1.0
To be perfectly honest, $2 was too much to pay for this story.
littletsundoku's review against another edition
4.0
Book 1: Queen of Hearts – 3.8 / 5.0 ⭐
Book 2: Blood of Wonderland – 4.0 / 5.0 ⭐
Book 3: War of the Cards – 4.5 / 5.0 ⭐
The plot:
Only queens with hearts can bleed.
This is not the story of the Wonderland we know. Alice has not fallen down a rabbit hole. There is no all-knowing cat with a taunting smile. This is a Wonderland where beneath each smile lies a secret, each tart comes with a demand, and only prisoners tell the truth.
Dinah is the princess who will one day reign over Wonderland. She has not yet seen the dark depths of her kingdom; she longs only for her father’s approval and a future with the boy she loves. But when a betrayal breaks her heart and threatens her throne, she is launched into Wonderland’s dangerous political game. Dinah must stay one step ahead of her cunning enemies or she’ll lose not just the crown but her head.
Evil is brewing in Wonderland and maybe, most frighteningly, in Dinah herself.
This is not a story of happily ever after.
This is the story of the Queen of Hearts.
My review:
Generally, I enjoyed this trilogy. I read it at a fast pace and I guess the factors that made that possible were the larger font sizes and big spacing between lines in my hardcover copies of Queen of Hearts. I’m not much of an Alice in Wonderland enthusiast so I didn’t get so hyped up and lowered my expectations when I started the first book but I did end up liking it. I had some minor issues with the saga but the pros outweigh the cons.
Book 2: Blood of Wonderland – 4.0 / 5.0 ⭐
Book 3: War of the Cards – 4.5 / 5.0 ⭐
The plot:
Only queens with hearts can bleed.
This is not the story of the Wonderland we know. Alice has not fallen down a rabbit hole. There is no all-knowing cat with a taunting smile. This is a Wonderland where beneath each smile lies a secret, each tart comes with a demand, and only prisoners tell the truth.
Dinah is the princess who will one day reign over Wonderland. She has not yet seen the dark depths of her kingdom; she longs only for her father’s approval and a future with the boy she loves. But when a betrayal breaks her heart and threatens her throne, she is launched into Wonderland’s dangerous political game. Dinah must stay one step ahead of her cunning enemies or she’ll lose not just the crown but her head.
Evil is brewing in Wonderland and maybe, most frighteningly, in Dinah herself.
This is not a story of happily ever after.
This is the story of the Queen of Hearts.
My review:
Generally, I enjoyed this trilogy. I read it at a fast pace and I guess the factors that made that possible were the larger font sizes and big spacing between lines in my hardcover copies of Queen of Hearts. I’m not much of an Alice in Wonderland enthusiast so I didn’t get so hyped up and lowered my expectations when I started the first book but I did end up liking it. I had some minor issues with the saga but the pros outweigh the cons.
xxpumpkincatxx's review against another edition
5.0
This is not your typical Alice in Wonderland "re-write". I'm truly interested to see how the next book unfolds! I finished this book & immediately read the excerpt from the next book. THAT CLIFFHANGER. Oh man.
Each Wonderland character is both themselves and not themselves. Nothing makes sense and it fits so perfectly together. It is brilliance. It is thrilling. It is madness.
I snickered. I had heart-ache. I had sadness. This novel has just about everything in it. Any fans of Alice in Wonderland characters should read this! It's so different and the same all at once. Kudos to the author for being able to write a novel of the characters in which they are and are not. It is truly...Wonderland.
Each Wonderland character is both themselves and not themselves. Nothing makes sense and it fits so perfectly together. It is brilliance. It is thrilling. It is madness.
I snickered. I had heart-ache. I had sadness. This novel has just about everything in it. Any fans of Alice in Wonderland characters should read this! It's so different and the same all at once. Kudos to the author for being able to write a novel of the characters in which they are and are not. It is truly...Wonderland.
laughlinesandliterature's review against another edition
3.0
I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*
Queen of Hearts was an intriguing start, but I really felt like this book was too short for me to really start to figure out Dinah. It just seemed like a very abrupt ending, especially given the sneak peek in the prologue.
I really liked Dinah and I felt like she was really a victim, even though we are always told the Queen of Hearts is an evil villain. Her father was just so terrible to her, and I still haven’t figured out why. I know he wants to keep his throne, but that just seems like too easy of an excuse and there should be more.
I did really like Charles even though he was so damaged and childlike. I’m disappointed that he’s already out of the story because I thought he really added a human aspect to Dinah. She did love him, and would’ve done anything for him.
A few of the side characters I didn’t really enjoy at all. Wardley took advantage of Dinah’s friendship, and it was clear to me that he was developing feelings for Vittiore despite everything that she put Dinah through. I just felt like there should’ve been some loyalty there for his oldest friend. I do think that Vittiore is just a pawn, but she is being controlled by the king and therefore you cannot trust her.
I think Colleen Oakes created a great world, but it just felt too short and rushed for me. It ended just as I was starting to get really involved in Dinah and the world, so that was really difficult for me. I would give this book 3.5 out of 5 stars, because it had potential and was just starting to get good. I will definitely be keeping an eye out for the next book!
*This review was first posted on Moonlight Gleam Reviews http://moonlightgleam.com/2014/03/queen-of-hearts-by-colleen-oakes.html*
Queen of Hearts was an intriguing start, but I really felt like this book was too short for me to really start to figure out Dinah. It just seemed like a very abrupt ending, especially given the sneak peek in the prologue.
I really liked Dinah and I felt like she was really a victim, even though we are always told the Queen of Hearts is an evil villain. Her father was just so terrible to her, and I still haven’t figured out why. I know he wants to keep his throne, but that just seems like too easy of an excuse and there should be more.
I did really like Charles even though he was so damaged and childlike. I’m disappointed that he’s already out of the story because I thought he really added a human aspect to Dinah. She did love him, and would’ve done anything for him.
A few of the side characters I didn’t really enjoy at all. Wardley took advantage of Dinah’s friendship, and it was clear to me that he was developing feelings for Vittiore despite everything that she put Dinah through. I just felt like there should’ve been some loyalty there for his oldest friend. I do think that Vittiore is just a pawn, but she is being controlled by the king and therefore you cannot trust her.
I think Colleen Oakes created a great world, but it just felt too short and rushed for me. It ended just as I was starting to get really involved in Dinah and the world, so that was really difficult for me. I would give this book 3.5 out of 5 stars, because it had potential and was just starting to get good. I will definitely be keeping an eye out for the next book!
*This review was first posted on Moonlight Gleam Reviews http://moonlightgleam.com/2014/03/queen-of-hearts-by-colleen-oakes.html*
mariethelibrarian's review against another edition
3.0
It was a bit meh. Dinah is sooo caught up in her own mind that she cant piece together whats right in front of her! And it fell a bit flat. Like things just happened? Im gonna read the rest but its just not that addictive all though its easy to read and quite fast paced.